Your website may be returning a "502 Bad Gateway" or similar error to visitors. These types of HTTP status codes indicate an issue between the client (browser) and the server. When CDN (content delivery network) services like Medianova are used, this error is detailed as shown in the image: the browser and CDN are working, but the main server (host) is returning an error. In this article, we cover all HTTP error codes and their solutions in detail.
❌ What is 502 Bad Gateway?
Meaning: The gateway or proxy server did not receive a valid response from the origin server.
Possible Reasons:
-
The server may have crashed
-
The web server (Apache, Nginx) is not running
-
PHP-FPM, Node.js, MySQL services may have stopped
-
DNS configuration error
-
The firewall may be blocking CDN servers
-
The backend cannot respond due to excessive traffic
✅ Solution Suggestions:
-
Restart your web server (Apache/Nginx)
-
Check PHP-FPM or related application services
-
Monitor whether there is enough RAM/CPU on the server
-
Make sure you have configured DNS records correctly
-
If you are using a CDN like Cloudflare/Medianova, remove IP blocks
Other Common HTTP Error Codes and Meanings
Code | Description | Possible Reasons | Solution |
---|---|---|---|
400 | Bad Request | Invalid request | Check URL characters |
401 | Unauthorized | No authorization | API Token / Login information must be added |
403 | Forbidden | Access denied | IP/role block, directory permissions |
404 | Not Found | Page not found | Check URL, see if file exists |
405 | Method Not Allowed | Incorrect method such as POST instead of GET | API endpoint check |
408 | Request Timeout | Server did not respond within the expected time | Performance optimization |
429 | Too Many Requests | Too many requests sent | Rate limit is applied, wait |
500 | Internal Server Error | Unknown error on the server side | Check error logs (error.log) |
501 | Not Implemented | Server cannot handle the request | Update/compatibility issue |
502 | Bad Gateway | CDN or proxy cannot get a response from the backend server | Web server check |
503 | Service Unavailable | Server is under maintenance or overloaded | Check scheduler / Insufficient RAM |
504 | Gateway Timeout | CDN or proxy server timed out | PHP script may take too long |
Monitoring and Testing Tools
-
curl -I https://yourwebsiteaddress.com
→ Check HTTP response -
ping
,traceroute
→ Is there a network access problem? -
journalctl -xe
(Linux) → Examine service logs -
CDN logs (Medianova, Cloudflare) → Is there a response delay or blocking?
✅ Conclusion
HTTP error codes are important diagnostic tools for system administrators and developers. The 502 Bad Gateway error usually indicates a temporary problem on the server side. In CDNs like Medianova, the cause of this error is clearly shown: the browser and CDN are working, but the main server is not responding. With the table and suggestions above, you can recognize other error codes and quickly produce solutions.